


The Drop Dead Dream, The Chosen One

by Chash



Series: Miss Atomic Bomb [6]
Category: The Song of the Lioness - Tamora Pierce, Tortall - Tamora Pierce
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-29
Updated: 2014-06-29
Packaged: 2018-02-06 15:57:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1863684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chash/pseuds/Chash
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>People want to help Alanna; Alanna tries to accept it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Drop Dead Dream, The Chosen One

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sadcypress](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sadcypress/gifts).



"Daine was worried about you, by the way," Numair tells Alanna. He thinks he finally has about the long and short of her current situation, although it's a lot to take in. He's been in some sticky situations in his life, but he's never decided that the way to deal with it would be to create a new drag persona for himself. Although it does sound fun, come to think of it. "Can I tell her what happened?"

Apparently just to fuck with her father, Alanna is dressed up as "Alan" tonight. She looks more boyish than he would have expected; he probably would have fooled if he didn't know her. "Sure," she says, shrugging. Her voice is different too. It really is remarkable. "My father's trying to go with the story that I'm just a tomboy, but I don't care how many people know the truth now."

"But she's not goin' out and tellin' any of those reporters out there," George observes. He leans over and tweaks her nose; Alanna screws up her face and sticks her tongue out.

"Those aren't reporters, those are paparazzi," she says. "I'm not going to become a tell-all account in some grocery store tabloid next to a story about which actresses are pregnant. My father's a bastard, but even I won't go that far."

"Hey, let's be nice to bastards," George protests, grinning.

Alanna grins back. "You're right, my apologies to bastards everywhere. He's an asshole."

"We appreciate your consideration."

Numair smiles. He and Alanna met when she was a freshman and he'd just started his PhD program; she had a job at the campus library back then, and she'd started talking to him because all the books he took out were so interesting. She never seemed unhappy, but seeing her with George, it's obvious how much she's flourishing. It makes Numair feel like a proud older brother, watching them. But it's a little lonely, too.

"So, what does this mean for your academic future?" he asks.

Alanna sobers. "I don't really know yet. My father's officially withdrawn his financial backing, and he says he's removed me from his will. He tried to take all the money out of the joint account he had in my name, but I haven't let any significant amount of money stay in there since he opened it."

"That's my boy," says George.

She flashes him a grin. "I'm meeting with some dean tomorrow, I honestly don't know how financial aid works with a falling-out of this magnitude. Parental resources should still be a factor, but when he wants to completely remove me from his life, it seems a little unfair." She shrugs. "I'll definitely keep you posted."

"If there's anything I can do, please let me know," Numair says. "I'm happy to speak with them on your behalf if you think it would help. I'm high profile; they like keeping me happy."

"I think they'll probably already be on my side," Alanna says, smiling.

"Your da isn't exactly makin' himself sympathetic."

"He just needs to grow a mustache he can twirl. But thanks for the offer, Numair," she says. "I'll definitely let you know. And you should probably go. You're still doing those nature walks, right? Mondays?"

Numair glances at his watch and curses under his breath. "I don't know why I agreed to this."

"I do," says Alanna smugly. "Say hi to Daine for me."

"I never should have told you about her," Numair grumbles.

"I tried to get you to shut up about it, but you wouldn't. You've made your bed, now lie in it."

*

Alanna had to swap her shift at the coffee shop on Thursday to deal with her father, but the only other shift she could get was Friday, so she missed out on a day of working with Myles. He didn't seem particularly upset, but she still feels bad, so she comes in on Monday morning instead of working from George's like she usually does, and brings him a muffin, just to be safe.

"Sorry about Friday," she tells him. "Family emergency."

"No need to apologize, my dear," he says, smiling. "I wouldn't say I'm overly fond of gossip, but when my students are involved I do try to stay abreast of the news. And it was very flattering to discover you'd borrowed my name. How are you doing?"

"It's been a surreal couple of days," she admits, smiling. "But I've known this was coming for a while. In a way, it's a relief to have it over with. I'm not waiting for the other show to drop."

Myles nods. "And have you spoken to the university about your future here?"

"Not yet. I have an appointment with one of the deans this afternoon, but I don't know what I'll find out. Right now, I'm planning to go down to part-time next year so I can work more. I won't complete my degree on time, but I'd like to still complete it."

Myles nods. "Please keep me posted. I'd like to help out in any way I can."

"Everyone keeps saying that," Alanna says. She glances over at Myles, narrowing her eyes. "You know, for someone who doesn't follow gossip, you're very well informed. The name Alan Olau wasn't in any of the stories I saw."

Myles smiles at her, serene and inscrutable. "As I said, when it comes to my students, I do try to keep up. Sometimes I keep up better than the press."

Alanna laughs and shakes her head. "Of course you do."

"Of course I do. Now, if there's nothing else, we have work to do."

*

George switches his Monday shift with Marek; he doesn't know much about how college financing works, but Alanna's been having a rough few days, and she deserves something nice. It's his job to provide those things.

"You know," she remarks, when she sees him waiting for her outside Myles' office at the end of the day, "I just got Buri to stop calling you _Alanna's stalker_. You're gonna undo all my hard work."

"Well, we can't have that," he says, leaning down to kiss her. "It would be like if you stopped calling that Daine girl _Numair's underage girlfriend_."

"But seriously, what are you doing here? I thought you had work tonight."

"I swapped for Marek's Wednesday shift. Thought you'd probably had a long day."

"I did," says Alanna.

"What did the dean say?"

"It's too late to apply for financial aid for this semester," she says. "There are deadlines and the budget's already been allocated, blah blah. I could take out loans, but I don't know if it's worth it. I know a lot of people come out of school with debts," she adds, quickly. "But I don't want to make any snap decisions. If I'm getting private loans, I still have a little while to make up my mind."

George nods. "Very wise. Don't rush into it." He glances down at her. "You know Jon would just give you the money if you let him."

"I know. He'll probably try to hide it in my bag when I'm not paying attention or something." She frowns when he doesn't turn on their usual street. "Where are we going?"

"I thought you could use some comfort food, and I'm no good at that," he says, grinning. "I'm takin' you to the expert."

Alanna raises her eyebrows. "The expert?"

"Ma, of course."

"You're bringing me to meet your mother?"

"I met your brother. Fair's fair. And you said you wanted to."

"I do," says Alanna. "I was just planning to dress up a little more. Maybe take a shower first."

He laughs. "You look beautiful, darlin'. And she doesn't mind. If you're real worried, we can go back, though. I don't mind."

"No, it's silly," Alanna hedges, worrying her lip.

"Your dorm's on the way," George points out. "You can grab something there. Buri can make fun of me about stalkin' you. It'll be fun."

Alanna glances at him. "You don't mind?"

He puts his arm around her and kisses her temple. "Should've warned you. But she'll love you, doesn't matter what you wear. She's real excited."

"I believe you. But I wouldn't want to deprive Buri of a chance to make fun of you. She has so few joys in her life."

George laughs. "That's the spirit."

*

Eleni Cooper is a tall, slim woman, with brown hair and the same hazel eyes as her son. She pecks George on the cheek and sends him to the garden to pick tomatoes for the salad before turning her attention to Alanna. "You must be Alanna. I've heard quite a lot about you."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Alanna says, resisting the urge to look away or scuff her feet.

"Oh, don't be nervous," she says, surprising Alanna by pulling her in for a hug. "Come on in, we don't stand on ceremony in this house. I'm sure that won't surprise you. I tried my best to raise George polite, but by the time he was in high school I could tell it wasn't sticking, so I just gave up and let the chips land where they may."

Alanna laughs and follows her inside. The house is small, but it feels warm and lived in, the kind of place she can imagine George tearing around as a kid, scraping his knees and raising hell.

"George said I shouldn't ask you to help cook," Eleni says, smiling.

"I'm not that bad!" she protests, laughing. "But, no, you shouldn't, not if you want it to be good."

"Well, you're both wrong. You'll never learn if you don't practice, so come over here and I'll show you what to do."

When George comes in with the tomatoes, Alanna is working on seasoning the soup. He comes over and wraps his arms around her, resting his chin on her head. "Going okay?" he murmurs.

"Nothing's on fire yet."

He goes to taste the soup and Eleni smacks him with her spoon as she passes. "Don't put your fingers in there, George Cooper, you haven't washed your hands." Alanna snickers, and George lets go of her to go wash his hands and help out with the rest of the meal. They have soup and salad and homemade bread, and it's nice. There's even pie for dessert. As promised, Eleni seems to like her instantly, and she and George love each other so much it's almost a little painful. Eleni kicked George out, and he recovered, and they're a better family than Alanna and her father could ever dream of being.

Eleni sends them home loaded down with leftovers. She sees Alanna off with another hug, a kiss on the cheek, and an invitation to come any time, with or without George. George wraps his mother up in a hug of his own, and she pulls him down to tell him something that makes him smile.

"She likes you," George tells Alanna. "Thinks you're good for me. Might keep me humble."

"That's a tall order."

George grins and ruffles her hair. "Feelin' okay?"

"Yeah. She's nice."

"And?"

Alanna glares at him. "And, I think you must have been a total asshole when you were a kid, if you got _her_ to kick you out."

She expects George to laugh it off, but he just gives her a sad smile. "I'm not always proud of who I used to be," he says, and she squeezes his hand.

"I was thinking I'm jealous," she admits. "I love Thom, but we'll never have a family like that."

He gives her a look so fond it makes her blush. "Never say never. I can share."

*

"Have you made up your mind yet?" Myles asks on Friday. There's something odd about his tone--a little too casual, she thinks. "About your plans for next year."

"I think I'm going to go down to part time," Alanna says. "I don't want to end up with a lot of debt, and I'd have to, unless I also burned through all my savings. I'd rather take a little longer to figure out my finances, than spend all I have and end up with no idea what I'm doing."

"Very sensible," says Myles. "But I have a counter-argument, if I may."

"A counter-argument," Alanna repeats, amused. Myles is her favorite professor, but he really is a little odd. "You may."

"You're a bright, capable student, and I'm horrified at what you're going through. I'd like to help finance your last year of school."

Alanna stares at him, mouth agape. "Myles, you _can't_."

"I don't see why not. I'll be on sabbatical, so no one can possibly accuse me of favoritism, as you will not be able to take any classes with me to be favored in. My family is not as wealthy as yours, but they certainly have more wealth than they need. And, being an older, single man with a job that pays him somewhat absurdly well, I've been able to accrue even more wealth. I'd be happy to loan you the money, to be paid back within your lifetime. With no interest."

Alanna stares at him. She bites back a confusing wave of _anger_ that she can't explain; Myles hasn't done anything wrong. She takes a breath and says, "It's very kind of you to offer. But I need to think about it."

"Of course," says Myles. He adds, "Charity isn't always bad, Alanna."

She grits her teeth and smiles. 

*

"Don't you have work tomorrow?" George asks, turning off the open sign and locking the door. Alanna is sitting on the bar, swinging her feet back and forth. He hadn't been expecting her at all, but she came in after dinner with Jon and Raoul and stayed to hang out with him even after they left. There's been something off about her, but he can't quite pinpoint what, and she brushed it off when he asked. "You're gonna be real tired, stayin' up to close with me."

"I switched for an opening shift on Monday," says Alanna. "I'm off tomorrow."

"And you didn't tell me," George says, shaking his head. "Wanted it to be a surprise?"

Alanna shifts on the counter top, deliberate, opening her legs. George swallows hard; she's not wearing anything under her skirt. She smirks when he meets her eyes. "Somethin' like that."

"I'm startin' to think you've got some kinda bar fetish," he says, voice gruff.

"Some kinda bartender fetish," Alanna corrects, reeling him in for a kiss. George leans into it, sliding his hand between her legs to rub her clit. He's discovered she prefers getting off the first time before penetration even starts, and that she really, really likes his hands, everywhere. And she also, apparently, really likes getting fucked on the bar.

"Quite an evil plot you came up with here," he murmurs, sliding his mouth down to kiss her neck. "Seducin' me at my place of work."

"It's a lot hotter than my place of work," Alanna says, already going breathless. "You have more free counter space. I'd be--" She gasps sharply as George slides two fingers into her. "I'd be hitting my elbow on the cash register," she says, recovering.

She's wearing another sundress, and the cotton's already soaked. "How long were you thinkin' about this?" George asks. "Chattin' with our friends normal as anythin', gettin' wet thinkin' about what I'd do to you?"

"All night, yeah," says Alanna, squirming. George pushes her back so she's lying flat against the counter, going in for another long kiss as he works his fingers inside her. 

"Keep talkin'," he murmurs, sliding down to push her legs open and get his mouth in place of his hands.

"I, um--" says Alanna, gasping. "I thought about this before when--when you didn't know I was a girl. It was my go-to fantasy for months, you fucking me on the bar."

Alanna doesn't talk much about the development of her feelings for him; he'd never been sure how and when she became interested. He loves every scrap of it, every hint that she was tied up over him too.

"Why'd you stop thinkin' about it?" he asks, crooking his fingers up to stroke her g-spot.

"Fuck," she gasps. "You _actually_ fucked me on the bar, and then we started--fuck--dating and having sex all the time." She fumbles at his jeans, getting them undone, and manages, "Speaking of, fuck me on the bar, please. I need you in me right now."

George laughs, pulling up to kiss her again. "Well, since you said _please_."

Afterward, she helps him close up, and he waits until they're back in his apartment before he says, "Didn't know you were thinkin' about me so long." She's in front of him, so he can watch the color climb up her neck. "Nothin' to be embarrassed about," he tells her, kissing her neck. "I was thinkin' about you too."

"What did you think about? When you thought I was a boy."

George yawns. "Same kinda things. Just you had a dick."

Alanna laughs, shoving him gently. "I was being serious."

"Me too." He nuzzles her hair. "I wasn't disappointed or anythin'. If you'd had a dick, I'd like suckin' it. But I got no complaints."

"Oh good," says Alanna. "I was really getting the sense you were sexually unfulfilled."

"Hush," he says, and pushes her into the bathroom to brush her teeth.

They're in bed when she says, "Myles offered to give me the money to finish school next year."

George is tired, but it's obvious this has been bothering her, so he tugs her back against his chest. "You don' sound pleased," he murmurs. "I'd be happy."

"That's just it," Alanna says. "I've got Jon and Myles and Thayet offering to just throw money at me, and you and Numair saying you'll do whatever you can for me. What did I do to deserve that? What about kids like you? Why wasn't anyone giving you money to go to college?"

"'Cause I was a little shit," says George, nuzzling her hair. "They want to help you because they love you, darlin'. The same reason I do."

"It just feels like cheating."

"And takin' your da's money didn't?"

She laughs softly. "No. It felt like I was doing something good, taking money away from that asshole."

"Well, you're doin' something better if you let Jon or Myles help you out," George says. "Lettin' the people who love you take care of you." He squeezes her hand. "And I'm gonna fall asleep, so can we finish this talk tomorrow?"

She squeezes back. "Yeah, we can do that."

*

"We're going to wake him up," says Raoul.

"Not if we're _quiet_ ," says Alanna. "He's a deep sleeper. He didn't even twitch when I got up."

Raoul scrubs his face; he looks pretty exhausted himself, but he's a good enough friend that when Alanna called and said she had a food emergency, he came over. "Why do we need to do this?"

"Because I was a total mess last night and he's great. And I'm a terrible cook so I need help."

"I guess that's an acceptable reason," says Raoul. Between the two of them, they manage to make eggs and bacon, with Raoul doing most of the heavy lifting and Alanna handling making the coffee and ensuring nothing burns. He takes a large pile of the bacon and the rest of Eleni's homemade pie in payment for his services and lurches off.

_They do this because they love you_ , Alanna thinks.

"Did you call my mother?" George asks, when she wakes him up. "It smells like someone cooked."

"I did not call your mother," Alanna protests. "I cooked."

"Uh huh."

"With Raoul."

George nearly falls out of bed laughing. "That was my second guess."

"Just shut up and come have breakfast. I gave him your mother's pie, by the way."

"Now that sounds like a disturbin' euphemism," George comments. He tugs on a pair of boxers and follows her into the kitchen. "What's the occasion?"

"You putting up with me."

"It's a nice thought, but I like puttin' up with you. You feelin' better?"

"I guess. I still don't feel like I deserve all this. I could get by on my own."

"You could, but they want to help you. That's their call. I didn't do anythin' to deserve this nice breakfast, but you made it for me, and I'm goin' to be happy to eat it."

"College tuition is a lot bigger than breakfast," Alanna says. "But that actually makes a lot of sense."

"I'm very wise," says George. His mouth is full of eggs, which takes away a little from the sentiment.

"What would you do?" she asks suddenly. "If someone offered to put you through college."

He raises his eyebrows. "I'd say no. Why?"

"You said you were wondering about living up to your potential."

George laughs. "Well, don't go askin' Jon to put me through school. I don't know what I'd study, to start with, and I think it's a little late. But once I make up my mind about what I want to do, you'll be the first to know."

He makes it sound so easy. "I think I'll take the loan from Myles," she decides.

"Good," says George. "I think you should."

"And I think we should cook dinner for Jon and Raoul."

He laughs. "Sure, we can do that too."

_You can do this because you love them_ , she thinks, and that's an even better thought.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [[Podfic of] The Drop Dead Dream, The Chosen One](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2425928) by [knight_tracer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/knight_tracer/pseuds/knight_tracer)




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